Firefighter frees Central California woman stuck in drainage pipe

MADERA — A Central California woman is recovering after being stuck in a large water drainage pipe for at least a day.

The Fresno Bee reports (http://bit.ly/1KFxcUn ) Sunday that the Madera woman was found Sunday morning after being stuck inside the underground canal near Martin Luther King School. It was not clear why she was in the canal. She was not seriously injured.

Crews from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection freed the woman.

Her name and age were not released. She told authorities she wandered into the canal through another access point nearly a mile away. She apparently then lost her way.

Madera police say the incident serves as a reminder that people should stay away from canals, which are dangerous and can frequently and unexpectedly flood.